By Brett Hetherington*

It was a cold, rainy morning as Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner arrived in Canton. But he was not just in town for the Hall of Fame festivities, he had also come to learn more about the work that Canton for All People is doing to provide affordable housing in the community.

Canton for All People is a community development corporation formed by Crossroads United Methodist Church (Central Valley District) whose aim is to bring quality housing and opportunities for all people to downtown Canton. Canton for All People hosts the Shorb Market throughout the week, providing fresh produce and groceries to residents at no cost, serving as one of the largest food distributors in the State of Ohio. It also opened Gonder Place on the south side of Canton which includes a health center and a discount grocery store – in an area that was formerly a food desert. But it was the home restoration, rentals and construction which brought Secretary Turner and others to town.

Joining Secretary Turner were U.S. Representative Max Miller (OH 7), Ohio State Senator Jane Timken (R-Jackson Township) and Stark County Commissioner Alan Harold.

“When we started six years ago, we were told it wasn’t worth it, it’s not worth bringing it back. There are 900 children living in this neighborhood. The land has value. The people have value. The neighborhood has value. We see it, the neighbors see it, the community sees it, and so it has been an uphill slogging battle trying to get others to see this, but we are finally there,” shared Rev. Don Ackerman, lead pastor of Crossroads UMC and executive director of Canton for All People.

The tour started in one of the newly constructed homes, allowing all the visiting delegation to see the craftsmanship that is being put into each of the homes. The average cost for the homes that Canton for All People is building is approximately $215,000. The national median for home price is $435,000. Ackerman shared with a surprised delegation one of the ways they can make that possible.

“We have a superpower in Northeast Ohio. We have an abundance of trades. Here in Canton, Ohio we are right next to America’s Amish Country. These guys come in and they can frame houses and put up houses. They’re good faith-based folks who are just trying to do the right thing for the right people,” he shared.

Harold shared that one of the ways that the local government can help keep the housing affordable is through a 15-year property tax abatement. This helps to keep the mortgages affordable.

“I’m very encouraged to see this, and I love the public and private partnership. That’s the glue of our country. It’s not the government, it’s the private people, the churches. So, thank you for having a great vision. And thank you for executing,” Turner said.

A homeowner of a Canton for All People house was onsite during the visit and shared her story with the delegation. She told a moving account of Canton for All People and vouchers from HUD aiding her and her son who has cerebral palsy in moving from Section 8 to home ownership.

“The education that we received here today is no doubt not only going to help the City of Canton and others but right there in my district of the 7th where we have issues like this, that also need to be course-corrected like affordable housing. We’re here learning and we’re going to bring everything that we learned here today from the Rev. and from the Secretary and apply it to our district so we can do even better for our constituents in the 7th,” shared Miller.

Ackerman shared that homes are not just built but also rehabilitated. Vacant homes are purchased and if they can be brought up to code and livable standards they are, with about 1/3 of those being held back for rental properties. The new properties being built are built with families from the beginning, as they are involved in nearly every step along the way. “With almost every house a family is contracted to the house, involved in every step of the process, picking paint, siding, cabinets, etc.,” he shared.

“You want to give people not just a decent place but an excellent place to live that they can be proud of. As soon as I walked in here, I knew there was quality here,” Turner said, commenting on the commitment to quality throughout the process.

The tour then moved to Newton Family Apartments, a new apartment building being built on the former site of the Canton Inn. The site was once a haven of drug use, trafficking and prostitution. But since the demolition and the beginning of construction Ackerman shared that they have seen crime rates drop 30% in that two-year period.

The apartment building will host 52 units, primarily two and three bedrooms and will also serve as the headquarters of Canton for All People. It is four-stories high and will include a playground for residents and neighborhood children. Ackerman shared that they are also renovating a nearby church that will offer free childcare for residents of the building, and all building residents will receive free YMCA memberships. The building is located within one-half mile of two of the area’s biggest employers, the Cleveland Clinic and Aultman Hospitals. But Ackerman knew that the location was even more important than just that.

“This was the anchor. We knew anything that we put into this neighborhood, any rehab, every house that this had to be the first thing that dropped because any new house that I put would still be in the shadow of what used to be here,” he shared. There are another 67 homes planned to be added to the area by the end of 2027.

Senator Timken shared her thoughts on the work of Canton for All People, saying “This is the beauty of what happens with those public/private partnerships to uplift our communities. The children that live here, their lives are going to be transformed because of the work of Rev. Ackerman. And the partnerships with not only our local government but our federal government. This is the way we can transform our communities we have such a need in Ohio and across this country for more housing for our people, and this is the way we’re going to get it done.”

The apartment complex is expected to be completed near the beginning of February and the hope is to begin getting people signed up for apartments toward the end of this year or the beginning of the next year.

When asked what he saw at Canton for All People that could be passed on to other areas in the country Secretary Turner said, “public/private partnership can be passed on. Rev. Ackerman, the commissioner, the senator and the congressman have not shied away from difficulty. And Rev. Ackerman would tell you this is a difficult situation that many people have said is not possible to change. And what I have picked up today is the heart of the people said it may be difficult but it’s not too difficult for us to change if we care. There’s a scripture in the Bible that says, ‘is there anything too hard for the Lord?’ And the answer is no. And by the grace of God, by the leadership of the Holy Spirit, by the power of God and His presence and His people now we’re standing in a situation that many people said cannot be done that is being done.”

The Conference Communications team would like to share other stories that highlight ways that each of us is answering the call to reach out to our communities in creative ways. Please e-mail your ministry story to EOC Executive Director of Communications Rick Wolcott at wolcott@eocumc.com.

* Brett Hetherington is the Communications specialist for the East Ohio Conference of The United Methodist Church.